A B.C. resident who shares the same name, age and hometown as a convicted animal killer with homicidal fantasies is worried about being mistaken for the woman, who was recently released from jail.

Kayla Bourque, a 23-year-old from New Westminster, says having so much in common with the convicted animal killer makes her uncomfortable.

“Some of my co-workers have ribbed me, but it is an issue,” she told CBC News.

“I am worried that people that may not know me quite personally, and they just have the wrong information and they might be too wary to ask, and they might just be walking around thinking I just might be that person, which is a little unsettling to me."

The other Kayla Bourque was the subject of a public warning earlier this week. She was released from custody after serving time for torturing and killing animals. She also admitted to fantasizing about shooting homeless people.

Although both Bourques both grew up in Prince George, the two never met.

However, New Westminster’s Bourque says she was once mistaken for the criminal Bourque when she was late for work and forgot to buy a public SkyTrain ticket.

“Everything was pretty cordial, it was business as usual for them especially, and all of a sudden they got really tense and they were like, ‘Can you get your hands out of your pockets please?’”

That’s when she realized something was very wrong.

“I could sense his partner behind me kind of creeping up a little bit and I was like, ‘What is going on?’ and then they laughed, and tension evaporated and they were like, ‘Good thing we ran that through twice.’”

Woman calls herself 'polar opposite'

She says her family’s good humour lets her smile at the unfortunate coincidence — but it’s not easy.

“My mum called me … and she was telling me that some of her co-workers mentioned that they saw it in the paper and they didn’t really want to ask.”

Bourque worries the coincidence might lead people to make assumptions.

“I was starting to get worried that maybe I might hit some roadblocks with it, if I’m handing out resumés and that’s all people see of me.”

Bourque, a cat owner, wants the public to know just how different she is from the other woman.

“I am actually an animal activist-type person,” she told CBC News. “I am not psychopathic … I am not inclined to hurt people. I feel I’m a fairly compassionate person. I would be a polar opposite, if anything.”

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Kayla Bourque, 23, is the subject of an unusual public warning because of her violent history and high risk to re-offend. The former "disturbed" SFU student was convicted of killing her family's pets and has an "escalating criminal history." Read more.